A raise would be nice, right? But just because you’ve been at a company for a certain number of years doesn’t mean that you automatically are going to get paid more. If you really want someone to increase your salary, you have to demonstrate your value.
How you go about demonstrating your value depends on your industry and your position. But no matter what role you play, I can guarantee that if you can claim any of the following, your chances of being granted a raise go way up:
- I grew this program in this short amount of time.
- I brought in so many new customers.
- I put an end to this much (time, labor, product, money) from being wasted.
- I created a new product or process that has been successful.
- I have eagerly taken on new responsibilities without any of my other work suffering.
- I increased profits.
Ultimately, though all the hours and work you put in should lead to more money in your mind, your superiors are concerned about the bottom line.
If you can show that you helped improve that bottom line, then the odds are in your favor. Negotiating a raise doesn’t have to be awkward, as long as you remember that while you’re perceiving your work as qualitative—your attention to detail, your showing up on time, your strong ethics—your superiors see it as quantitative.
So go ahead, tell them your story of your amazing efforts, but make sure that the moral of your story is in numbers–that’s the language your boss has to speak to keep the company healthy.
As a speaker and author, Curtis Zimmerman has impacted over one million people with his life-changing messages and award-winning programs. Curtis is an expert at transforming organizations by inspiring individuals to live their lives at performance level.
Want to be inspired? Check out his podcast The Next 24 Hours.
